Google privacy policy and Gmail ads: the 18-word exception
Google changed one sentence of its privacy policy on October 16, 2026, and the change decides whether the content of your Gmail, Drive and Photos can influence the ads you see. The old Google privacy policy said Google doesn't show you personalized ads based on that content. The new one adds an exception for data you choose to make available to other Google services that support personalized ads.…
Before October 16, 2026, Google's privacy policy stated that they did not show personalized ads based on sensitive categories and the content from Gmail, Drive, and Photos. The second part of the policy had 15 words.
The updated privacy policy, effective October 16, 2026, maintains the same stance on personalized ads based on sensitive categories. However, it now adds an 18-word exception allowing personalized ads based on data you choose to make available from Gmail, Drive, and Google Photos to other Google services that support personalized ads. The option to opt-out requires disconnecting the apps or switching off Personalized Recommendations in Search services.
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- Google will target ads based on Gmail, Photos data if Personal Intelligence is enabled 9to5google.com
- Updated Google privacy policy says your Gmail might be used for advertising arstechnica.com
- Google updates its privacy policy to clarify it could use data shared via Personal Intelligence from connected apps, including Gmail and Photos, to target ads (Shimul Sood/Android Authority) androidauthority.com
